Cows in Trees: A Warm and Witty Memoir of a Vet's Life

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You don't have to be an expert in mathematics to know that those odds defy statistical probability. According to a 2017 study from the Center for Agroforestry at the University of Missouri, silvopasture can also extend the grazing season, so that it starts earlier in spring and lasts longer in fall compared to open pasture. Forage also grows better in silvopastures during the hottest times of the summer compared to open pasture, the study found. On-farm, we like to have a variety of tree species. Putting the right tree in the right place is important. They offer their own unique benefits. Downes has also planted other native trees, including sycamore and hornbeam, where the emphasis is on improving the soil and pasture. “Rye grass is the mainstay of grassland land production in temperate regions (but) it doesn't root deeply so accesses nutrients in the top of the soil,” he explains. Nearly thirty years later, in May 2015, the online world contemplated a conspiracy rumor questioning whether the Challenger crew was in fact still alive, as evidenced by the fact that persons resembling those original crew members (at the approximate ages they would be now), and bearing similar or identical names, are still living and working in the United States:

Yes, the late Ronald McNair looked a lot like his brother, Carl, as many siblings do (but they're still easy to tell apart, as Carl has an obvious gap in his front teeth that Ronald didn't). And this proves what, exactly? It might be a curiosity if there were no record of the existence of "Carl McNair" until after the Challenger explosion, but that isn't the case. Are we supposed to believe that Ronald secretly took over his brother's identity after the Challenger "accident" and somehow engineered the disappearance of the real Carl? Of course, the real point of this comparison is that the creators of this conspiracy theory couldn't find a similarly named doppelgänger for Ronald McNair other than his own brother. It’s an old farming technique called silvopasture, in which cattle graze on a variety of plants, either in forests that have been thinned and planted with grasses and shrubs, or pastureland that’s been planted with widely spaced trees. Trees are a reliable source of shelter all year round. During the summer months, they provide shade from the sun and during the winter months, animals can shelter from the elements, protecting them from harmful exposure, such as wind chill. Different trees have different rooting zones, he continues, and bring up different minerals to the surface, allowing different forage crops to thrive. The trees also make the soil more friable, and he has found far more worms at the base of trees then in the more compacted pastures that don’t have the sylvan cover.On the farm I am investigating, beef cattle are grazing day and night in approximately 100 ha of grass and forests. The river that passes through the grazing land is once stored in a dam located downstream of the ranch, flows into the city, and then flows out into the Pacific Ocean. Some areas around the farm are conserved as water source recharge forests in the area, so there is concern about the effect of grazing on river water quality. From the previous studies, the ion concentration in the river water flowing through the ranch showed a slight increase in nitrogen concentration. Still, overall there was no significant difference with the water quality in the mountain stream area, and the effect on the downstream area was minimal. Caledonian pines and Coniferous trees such as Scots Pines: these are brilliant for creating sheltered areas on your farm, especially useful during the colder months. Soil is amazing in many ways, and one of those ways is that it contains plenty of useful nutrients, which often cannot be accessed through shallower-rooted grasses or other plants in your farm’s sward. With trees, however, you can access them, thanks to their roots. These reach deep down into the soil profile and draw up these hard-to-get nutrients, which your cows can then benefit from by munching on your trees’ leaves. Cows belong in pastures, right? While that image is idyllic, farmers and conservationists in the southeast United States are bringing their cows into the forest to benefit longleaf pine restoration projects. Hawthorn trees: These are high in zinc in the spring, which is another brilliant mineral for animals and a great food source for birds

A dairy farmer and Kempsey shire councillor, Sue McGinn, agreed that the floods needed to spark a bigger conversation about the price we are paying for fresh food and dairy products. The scope of the project is huge and has so far engaged with more than 15,000 farmers. Most of the milk is consumed locally but there are alo opportunities to sell any excess to local co-operatives and milk companies such as Brookside, which is partly owned by Danone.

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Ash and rowan trees: Our cattle really like to eat these, and they’re a great source of food for birds and other animals! The silvopastures are gold during droughts,” Chedzoy said. “The plants don’t wither and burn up like they do in the shadeless pastures.” Same problems: These two Sharon McAuliffes don't really look all that much alike, and while Christa McAuliffe (she went by her middle name rather than "Sharon") the schoolteacher was obtaining degrees in education from Framingham State College (Massachusetts) and Bowie State University (Maryland), teaching social studies at Concord High School (New Hampshire), and training with NASA, Sharon McAuliffe the lawyer was attending Syracuse University and working for an accounting firm in Syracuse (New York). Over the winter months! There's plenty of water for their establishment, and the trees are predominantly dormant. Well, at the least not trying to produce new growth, leaves and buds.

Shelter provided by trees can promote grass growth. Reports show it increases average annual pasture by 20%. This is due to a reduction of wind speed and evapotranspiration of water from grass. In dry springs and summers, this can be crucial in continuing grass growth. It also increases soil temperature in the early spring and late autumn, extending the growing season for grass. Along with planting edges, we’ve used agroforestry elsewhere to attract biodiversity to our land. For instance, we’ve put in a range of different plants on our farm’s steeper ground – which is unsuitable for grazing – to, once more, help us accommodate the diverse wildlife found throughout the Scottish Uplands. Benefit 3: Trees provide access to a range of nutrientsDownes sells much of his beef to Waitrose’s organic scheme. “We couldn’t access that market with Waitrose if we were farming intensively,” he says, while much of his milk goes to the Organic Milk Suppliers Co-operative. The way in which he runs his farm has also allowed him to access the lucrative American organic market. We own 25 acres of land and rent a further 60 acres for grazing and making hay and silage. We also have access to the mountain, which is common grazing for the cows to use. In a review paper, researchers Christopher R. Keyes and Matthew G. Keyes examine the economic viability and ecological success of silvopasture in the southeastern United States. Cows in forests, they find, could benefit ecosystems and farmers alike. Her Macleay Valley property, east of Kempsey, flooded after water breached the Belmore River on Friday. While she and her husband, Brett, haven’t lost cattle, they fear dormant flood waters will starve their grass, destroying their cow’s main food source and preventing them from planting winter feed.

Aberdeen Angus cattle graze at Angus Glen Farms, in Watkins Glen, upstate New York. Photograph: Heather Ainsworth The decisions we make today about trees will impact future generations for centuries. So it's pivotal to get them right, as each tree species offers unique benefits. Increasing temperatures - heat stress, sunburn and dehydration in animals, as well as an increased risk of harmful algal blooms in water supplies Silvopasture can also extend the grazing season, so that it starts earlier in spring and lasts longer in fall compared to open pasture. Photograph: Heather Ainsworth

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As you may well know, I've been an Assessor, and Senior Assessor at RSPCA Assured for over a decade. So you could say I know a few things about higher welfare farming. Ecology’ is the study of relationships between plants, animals, people and the environment, with a specific focus on how these elements work together. ‘Agroecology’, then, is the application of these ecological concepts to farming, specifically: using nature and natural relationships to boost your farm’s yields, productivity and more.